Chapter2 - Failure = Constant - (Confidence x Opportunity)

“Alright alright, I will sit for TCS”, I said with a relaxed attitude, concluding a breakfast long discussion with Vijay.

“the written exam is in an hour…… our names are in first list, now get your ass out there before that and yes I already signed for you in the willingness form”, Vijay said as we proceeded towards our rooms.

Tring! Tring!..... “hey, where were you, I couldn’t find you in the examination hall?.......and yeah, I cleared the written test”, I said in a hurry, while waiting in TPO for the interview.

“I got the Tata Steel ppo”, Vijay replied, in a not very good tone which was obvious as he must have got GPL’s in the hostel.

“Oh, that’s wonderful, told ya,  neways am waiting for my interview in TPO, so catch you later…bbye”.

Sourabh?.....Sourabh Verma?...... you are next! Be ready.

“Good morning sir”, I said as I closed the door behind.

“Good morning, Sourabh…. have a seat”, the elder one of the two interviewers said while scrutinizing my resume.

“Tell us something about yourself Sourabh….”

I repeated the mugged up answer which was further followed by some more obvious questions based on my resume.

“So you have knowledge of C?”, the one starring me for last five minutes asked…finally breaking his long silence.

 “Yes sir, I know programming and I know graphics too”, I replied with a smile.

…..and I regretted answering that for rest of my interview as I could not tell even the basics of C language which was obvious as I hadn’t revised C for years. So I was not shortlisted for HR interview when almost all the students were.

“Haila….. your name’s on the list….. TCS guys wants to see you”, one of my classmate told me as I was studying C language back in my room out of disguise.

“That sounds like a hope……. may be they want to give me a second chance……but its 10pm……interviews must be over by now”, a lot of other positive thoughts ran through my mind while I dressed up again and rushed to TPO.

“Hey…… why  are you dressed up….. interviews are over now…. They called everybody to declare the results…”, Sridhar(TPR) told me when I reached there.

“Oh…. I was just ……anyways how was your interview?”, I said….. wanting to kill that stupid guy who gave me incomplete information with the ‘only important part’ missing from it.

Tring! Tring!... “hello…… how was your interview…?”, didi asked

“They rejected me……and it’s kind of ok because I was not prepared”

“Then why do you sound sad?”

“Obviously it feels bad……everyone got selected, and I was miserable”

“ Look, it’s good that they rejected you……. I want you to get rejected…… why should you get free breads anyways…… prepare well next time, and when is the next company?”

“WIPRO is day after tomorrow…….”

“Alright, all the best … and you never wanted to work in a software company so why loose heart….. cheers and bbye”

“Vijay…… Vijay open the door”, I said leaning my weight on the door to make it difficult for him to unlock it from inside….. could not resist doing that after I found out once that it irritates him a lot.

“what happened…….?”, irritated vijay asked.

“It reached my room too……. Am gonna have to shift in your room now”, I said cursing Arjun singh for his godforsaken decision to increase the quota for reserved classes…..as it required more rooms for extra students that would be added from next year…….and the construction for another floor in our hostel  led to leaking of water from roofs……… “the leakage has started in my room too……there’s no more dry space left in my room where I could adjust my bed now”.

“Ha ha ha……I will charge 10/- per day ;)”, came the reply as I moved in.

*

WIPRO didn’t took any written test…….and there I was…..waiting with rest of unselected students like me, for interviews. It felt good to see every other student getting selected for the HR interview.

“Good morning sir”, I said as I waited for him to ask me to sit down.

“ Take a seat Sourabh, please start by telling about yourself”, he said as he kept my resume aside, uninterested in me for some reasons.

As I finished my introduction, he immediately asked me a stupid riddle…….well every riddle sounds stupid until you don’t know the answer……..

“Suppose there’s no one in the world but you…….. and you have to reach Varanasi from your home……how will you do that…..there are four directions to go to”

“I will ask from someone on the way sir”

“wrong….. there’s no one in the world except you”

“Then why would I go to Varanasi at first place?”

“that’s not the answer either”

I replied that by a silence……..after which he asked some more irritating questions and then concluded the interview without giving me the form for HR session which indirectly indicated that I was not selected………again.

I could not think of anything but to call didi, and so I did……. “Hello…… I got rejected again”

“Oh…… that’s gr8, look ……you are not meant for these software companies……so don’t be sad, it would have been sad if you were rejected by a Core company .. isn’t it?”

She always makes everything so obviously correct for me by giving convincing reasons…….that’s why she is one of the people I call when am sad. May be she could open a counseling firm of her own’s one day.

“Every tom dick and harry got selected there but me…..I mean what the hell is wrong……”

“you shouldn’t even be sitting for these mass recruiters……. Then why to worry?..... now cheer up again…..and take these interviews as rehearsals…ok?”

“yeah …. Feels good by thinking this way……thanx….. am going to have a tea now…… Bbye”

*

“Arora, common lets go for lunch”, I shouted from the centre of hostel standing with vijay.

“hey…look at the bond of C language who got rejected in two software companies……anything can happen in these campus interviews…..”, someone from a group of students said as we passed by their side, after which everyone broke into a big laugh.

I just smiled back at them….not sure of whether it was a compliment or they were just making fun of me.

“So, CSC tomorrow…… heard it takes GD sessions too”, Arora said trying to break the silence after that comment.

“Oh my god….. there goes another company out of my hand L”, I said in a worried tone as it was the second last software company and I could not see myself getting selected in the last one either as it preferred computer science students.

“you  never wanted a software company …why do you worry then? And why do you apprehend GD’s…… I mean others aren’t too good either”, Vijay said.

“I’m afraid that I may be doing something wrong in the interviews…….otherwise why would they reject me and take other guys ……some of who don’t even know how to use a pointer”, I replied in a frustrated tone.

“you will get what you deserve……Anyways…… do you need a dummy for today’s written test?...... I’m free J”, vijay asked.

“Thanks for asking but I can clear written tests”, I replied…… “I’m not worth getting a job if I can’t clear writtens on my own”.

*

“Hey……you cleared the written….you are in second group for GDs……leave the breakfast and rush to TPO”, vijay told me as he came late for breakfast.

“Ohk……”, I said briefly and ran like it was for my life.

“how long before GD’s for 2^nd group starts?”, I asked collecting my breath again as I had to run all the way to TPO because of my fuel less bike.

“The first batch is on…….it would take around 15 minutes”.

After I could breath properly again, I realized that it would be the first GD of my professional life……and given the fact that I like to stay quite in GD’s, it was a lot to be worried about.

“Sit accordingly as I call your names starting with the right most corner…..”, the partly bald official said after all 10 of us entered the room……… “Your topic for discussion is ‘Effect of US recession on Indian economy’……you have 5 min to think on the topic and than anyone can take a start…but in the final 10min. I will ask someone to close the discussion ……your time starts now”.

“Stay calm……and just look for points against others…..”, was what I could manage to think of in those 10min. when suddenly one of us started with his points.

“The US recession is good for India…… Indian currency rising against dollars….”

“I agree with my friend and to add to it, more MNC’s are now investing in india…. Which in turn will help develop the infrastructure and produce more and more jobs….”

“India is not very much affected by the slowdown…… atleast there are no negative points to consider….”

“Speak up……speak up……. Common …… find some points against them……if you won’t speak then you are already out of this GD……”, I kept trying to get a break as the discussion went on.

“At this point friends………I would like to state how the recession actually started…… because of the house loans that……”

…and that’s where I actually took part in GD…. “Whats the point of stating that……I hope everyone of us already know that…… and moreover I don’t agree that foreign industries investing in India is a very good idea as they are just utilizing the resources and not doing anything for the biggest sector of our country……the agriculture sector. Also ……as the per capita income in India’s increasing….they are getting used to more luxuries……consuming more resources and hence encouraging the difference in demand and production”, I said after which silence prevailed for a tiny second and then everybody shouted again to get a chance to speak.

In the last 10 minutes,… the bald guy……sorry, partly bald guy asked me to restate my point and then asked another student to conclude the GD. I was selected for the interviews whose timings clashed with the timings of written test for Aricent, the next and last software company.

Tring! Tring!..... “Hey Vijay, you have to sit for me in written exam of Aricent……the timings clashed with my interview today……I’ll sms you the basic information you would need about me……ok?”

“yeah……I’ll look after all of it….you relax and give your best in the interview….”

“thanx buddy……bbye……gotta go”

“Good evening sir”, I said as I entered panel-I and it was too late when I realized that I didn’t wait for his permission to sit down.

“Good evening ………Sourabh, please introduce yourself”, said the interviewer.

Can’t they just read my resume……I’m tired of introducing myself. As I finished my intro, he threw the next question on me….

“So, mechanical engineer…huh, just multiply 24 and 27 taking 7 as base”.

“Sorry sir, I am not able to solve it”, I replied after trying a little bit of calculation.

“Why a software company?.....being a mechanical engineer”

“I think my aptitude and quantitative skills are good, so I can perform better in providing solutions in KPO”

After all such easier HR questions, I was asked to solve some riddles, I solved 4 out of the 5 riddles, and the interview went pretty much good for rest of the part.

Tring! Tring!....... “hey buddy, you performed well in written exam of Aricent today ;)”.

“Thanx Vijay, I think I might get selected in CSC though……results will be disclosed any minute now”

“That’s cool……let’s hope for the best……I shall be going for dinner now….see you there, hopefully with a job ;)……bbye”

“Hey, please check whether I was selected for HR interviews or not…”, I asked excitedly to one of the person incharge over there.

“Sorry, but your name’s not on the list”, he replied.

“Oh my god, I was rejected again? What the hell is going on…….everything went fine this time and I answered almost all the questions……will I ever get selected for HR interview? Can you please check it again…… ”, I said…. I don’t know who I was talking to while I yelled all these lines……I felt sorry for myself……may be I should not go for software companies at all……